The Beloved Country

February 7, 2023 – Pietermaritzburg, South Africa 

We visited the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Pietermaritzburg today, looking for information on Alan Paton.  We found a treasure-trove of material, thanks to World-of-Knowledge Tom, and an enthusiastic librarian, Nazim.  

We also crossed paths with a local gangster, Ji Ka Joe.

In the late 19^th century, Paton’s father, and my great-grandfather, both lived in the Dennistoun subdivision of Glasgow, Scotland. The two Paton families have the same surname, with the same spelling and pronunciation, our families lived in the same area of Glasgow, at the same time.  I have not been able to find a direct hereditary connection yet, but it seems likely that I am distantly related to Alan Paton.  One of our missions on this trip is to see if we can close that connection.  

We had great difficulty communicating with the University from home, so I was not able to make an appointment before we came to Africa.  Problems with an under-funded university bureaucracy, power-outages, post-Covid work-from-home communications issues, and a nine-time-zone differential, resulted in us having almost given up hope that we would be able to visit The Alan Paton Centre and Struggle Archives.   That is where World-of-Knowledge Tom stepped in.

Tom has been our driver/security agent for the past four days.  We rode all the way to Rorke’s Drift and back in Tom’s van, four and a half hours each way. Every kilometer of the journey was an education.  Tom is very well versed in the workings of the complex “system” in South Africa. He knows how to avoid trouble, how to get out of it when it happens, and if necessary, how to resolve a sticky situation without anybody getting hurt, too much. 

Tom also has a pleasant, but forceful way with bureaucrats.  The Alan Paton Centre wasn’t open when we arrived, so Tom embarked on a mission to open it.  Within a half hour, we not only had an appointment, but with the Head University Librarian no less. 

–

In every field of endeavour there is an expert.  We have had the good fortune of meeting several of them on the trip so far, and today was no exception.

I could have spent a week at the library with Nazim.  In the short time we had, we discussed various aspects of Paton’s writing, and what his words have done for African unity in the seventy-five years since the publication of Cry, the Beloved Country. 

I am no closer to knowing if Alan Paton and I are related, but after spending time among his personal belongings and his writings, I feel an even deeper connection to the man. 

Alan Paton was far ahead of his time.  During the darkest days of apartheid, Paton was a glowing ember of hope for a unified South Africa.

I realize that this article will not be of wide general interest, but thank you for following along, it was a very important event for me.

Nazim and I spent some time at the end of our meeting speculating about what Alan Paton’s reaction might be to present circumstances, in …

… The Beloved Country.

---

---

Ji Ka Joe

I was interested to see Alan Paton’s family home, 554 Bulwer Street, so I asked Nazim if it is still standing.  He said that it is but explained that the house is now occupied by a notorious local “Bus Boss”.  

In Pietermaritzburg, all taxis and bus operations are controlled by a mafia-type organization.  Nazim said that we could drive by the address, but he suggested that it was probably not a good idea to stop or take pictures.

After we left the university, Tom drove us to Bulwer Street.  He looked the place over and suggested that it might be okay to take a quick, surreptitious, photo of Alan’s birthplace. 

Alan Paton was a man of integrity, I don’t know what he would think of the fact that his old home has been converted to an organized crime centre, operated by notorious gang leader, …

… Ji Ka Joe

---

---

First lines and Last Paragraph of a letter written by Nelson Mandela to Alan Paton, during his 15^th year of a 27-year imprisonment.

July 29, 1979

Dear Mr. Paton

This is my third attempt to reach you during the last 15 years. I first wrote to you immediately I could send out more than just two letters a year, and I thanked you for your courageous response of June 1965. It was not so easy those days to come forward as you did and few people are likely to forget that inspiring gesture. 

–

I do not know what works you published during the last 17 years, and I have no means of knowing. All I can tell you is that I am confident that you have not been idle. In fact, last year I heard that an American university had awarded you an honorary doctorate. Although I have no other information on the matter, I was happy to receive the news. Such an honour was well-deserved. That award has a personal and wider significance. For one thing it shows that your labours have not been in vain, that in spite of persistent droughts and choking weed, you sowed on good ground, that “the harvest is late; it has not failed.” My love and fondest regards to you and your wife, and to all the friends mentioned above.

Sincerely,

Nelson Mandela

---

---